Remembering a Piece of History
The Hartzell Memorial is one of the City’s few monuments to honor a woman. It was placed in the park in 1909 in memory of Annie Hartzell, a founder of the Western Pennsylvania Humane Society, according to her bequest of $18,000. Once a working fountain, it featured a large trough for horses on one side, a drinking fountain for humans on the other, a birdbath on top, and a pair of small basins at the base for dogs and squirrels. In 1973, the Memorial was relocated to a corner of Market Square and incorporated into a large circular pool. In 1990, due to renovation of Market Square, the Memorial was placed in a plaza at the corner of Federal Street. It was not plumbed as a fountain and its condition has since deteriorated.
A Need for Restoration
The 2002 Allegheny Commons Master Plan called for returning the Memorial to its original location as a monument rather than a fountain. In 2020, the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy, Allegheny Commons Initiative and Northside Leadership Conference launched a campaign to restore this beautiful piece of history and return the Monument to its original home. This campaign will compliment the ongoing restoration of the North Promenade section of the park. The proposed scope of work will include cleaning, repairing cracks and surface damage, replacing missing granite at the base, and replacing bronze elements. Drains will be installed if needed to keep the basins free of water. Our hope is to complete this work by the fall of 2022 as fundraising activity allows.
